Heresy Hunters: I Get By With a Little Help from My Friends

Looking back at this post from a few years back made me think of an upcoming event that I’m privileged to be part of: Co-Creation 2012, an urban gathering in downtown Greensboro, North Carolina this April 12-15. Why did this remind me of that? Because the old gang from World Future Society 2008 will be getting back together – Brian McLaren, Diana Butler-Bass, and myself, joined by Paul Smith. Now I should emphasize that I’ll be there more in a support role, while this terrific trio will be bringing wisdom from their three unique perspectives – that of change management narration (Brian McLaren – see this), action research (Diana Butler-Bass – see this), and Integral developmental theory (Paul Smith – see this). They’re going to share, in plain language, where the Church and larger global faith communities are at, right now, and where we’re going. Most importantly, they’ll be sharing the inner and outer journey tools we can use to follow Jesus into a preferred future – co-creating with God. There will also be music, dance, workshops, and great food within walking distance. If you haven’t already, I’d encourage you to register right now.

Of course, not everyone likes change, or deep wisdom that defies convention, as we’ve been exploring on the blog this week. What follows is a reflection on this from 2008:

You know you’re doing something worthwhile when all the right people are denouncing you.

A couple of weeks ago Herescope denouncedJay Gary, Diana Butler-Bass, Brian McLaren and myself, who will be hanging out at the World Future Society‘s annual conference in D.C. We’ll be talking about “The Future of the Religious Right” and of global Christian faith in general, but the Heroscope team sees our work as promoting “new theologies and practices,” and “disparaging…of biblical prophecy.” Somehow, they suspect that all this winds up “creating an evolutionary convergence” where we all sing Kumbaya and venerate Gaia and Easter bunnies. As if that’s a bad thing! 😉

Moving along: I’ve already told you the kind of flack The Shack has been getting recently with the heresy-hunter websites. Well, as Steve Knightreports at Emergent Village, now our ‘ol pal Mark Driscoll is in on the action too (you can watch his eight-minute YouTube rant on the E.V. link). Apparently he’s mighty uncomfortable with the sacred feminine, relational depictions of God, and the idea of the Trinity (and thus, human relatedness) as mutually submissive rather than chain-of-command hierarchical. Sigh. Co-publisher Wayne Jacobsen blogs his response to the question “Is The Shack Heresy?”

I have two observations about all the shelling and attack from this past month: Most of the people above are friends of mine, and for the most part, we can all laugh this off (in the cases of Frank and Team Shack, they can laugh all the way to the bank, as these books have really struck a chord with most readers and have become best-sellers)–even if we don’t know whether to laugh or cry sometimes. Others, though, are not so fortunate–heresy-hunters can cost people their livelihoods.

“That for the good of the Seminary (Faculty Manual II.4.C.4) Professor Peter Enns be suspended at the close of this school year, that is May 23, 2008 (Constitution Article III, Section 15), and that the Institutional Personnel Committee (IPC) recommend the appropriate process for the Board to consider whether Professor Enns should be terminated from his employment at the Seminary. Further that the IPC present their recommendations to the Board at its meeting in May 2008.”

I understand that confessionally Christian schools are not as enamored with “freedom of thought at any cost” like their liberal arts counterparts; I get that evangelical higher learning institutions are trying to maintain a precarious balance between intellectual integrity and nurturing creedal faith commitments. All the same, Enns is not Bishop Spong or something–he’s asking questions about Holy Writ that the rest of the Church (and world at large) have been asking since the 19th century. Like it or not, those who read and love the Bible are going to begin pondering its more troubling aspects with greater honesty and ideological flexibility.

Heresy-hunting is far from the world’s worst problem. (Next time, I’m going to blog about sex trafficking. Please try to refrain from throwing yourself off a building.) Nonetheless, it is a downer. As I mused last year, sometimes I wonder why I even bother participating in this kind of ‘dialogue’–it all seems so insular. Sometimes I just want to throw my blog into the ocean (so to speak) and becoming a wandering hermit…with my wife and child, of course. But for now, I suppose I’ll leave everyone with an easily-rebuttable maxim: If you don’t have something kind to blog, don’t blog anything at all.

About Mike Morrell

Mike Morrell is the collaborating author, with Fr. Richard Rohr, on The Divine Dance: The Trinity and Your Transformation. He's also the founder of Wisdom Camp, a retreat for mystical misfits, and a founding organizer of the justice, arts, and spirituality Wild Goose Festival.
Mike curates contemplative and community experiences
via Relational Yoga, the ManKind Project, and Authentic North Carolina,
taking joy in holding space for the extraordinary transformation that can
take place at the intersection of anticipation, imagination, and radical
acceptance.
Mike is also an avid writer, publishing consultant, author coach, futurist, and curator of the book-reviewing community, Speakeasy. He lives with his wife and two daughters in Asheville, North Carolina.

17 Responses to Heresy Hunters: I Get By With a Little Help from My Friends

After talking on the phone with Frank, I penned a short article on Pagan Conversations. I am still reading his book, and planning on longer interview with Frank.

The important thing is that on all sides the rhetoric of personal attack can be stifling. My question is this, do you think the “funny” video you posted which vilifies anyone who disagrees with Frank as “hateful” is any different than the heresy hunter websites you mention? If so, how?

Hi Mike,
One statement really resonated with me. “Heresy-hunting is far from the world’s worst problem.”

It may not be. But in some ways, it’s a meta-problem (or even a hella-problem). It takes time, energy, resources away from addressing real issues like sex trafficking.

The people who’s ministries are called “Grace to you” but then proclaim “Nothing must change, except you” are so filled with a sense of their own self-importance that they’re unable to see their own self-impotence. They bind heavy burdens on others but are unwilling to lift anyone’s burden. They turn “love your neighbor” into “condemn your neighbor.” They sit in God’ seat and eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.

It’s much easier to fight against someone else’s beliefs than to engage real people with real problems in the real world.

I certainly hope my most recent series of comments wasn’t seen as an attempt at “heresy hunting” and I hope that when I do get frustrated with *some* things emergent, I do so with gentleness and charity. If I ever fail to do that…just let me know, alrighty?

I met Frank Viola 3 years ago (and 2 years ago) – once in Portland, OR, and then at the House2House conference.

I know Paul Young (he spoke at our house church a year ago, when “The Shack” was fresh and new).

I know Paul and Lori Byerly, of H2H (they run the conferences) — they’re my next door neighbors (living in intentional community with them) … I met them through their “other” website…! (& of course, the Dales)

I met Brian McLaren, back when we lived in Washington, DC (Fairfax) (his books first started shaking up my box four years ago!).

Mark (husband) and I will see him again at Transmillennial 2008 …

I’ve heard rumors you’ll be at both H2H and Trans-2008 – is that right? If so, then I was right — God is up to something…! I mean, He’s always up to something, but in putting all these diverse things together, man, it makes my head spin…!

I don’t mean to sound like a star-struck kid, but I just had to write…

I won’t be able to make it to H2H this year unfortunately, but while there be on the lookout for my friend Neil Carter. We spent six years together in an Atlanta-area house church, and his just-released book, Christ In Y’all, is one of the best books on house churching from a non-fundie perspective.

I WILL, however, be at T-Mil 2008! I look forward to meeting you there!

thanks Mike,
it’s all beginning to make sense in my mind now…different bits and pieces i have been reading…
strange how all things get connected…
i.e. the ‘chain-of-command’ interpretation of the Trinity [despite the fact that Phil. 2 clearly says that on His Ascension [after His incarnation] Jesus received the Name that is above every name], is favoured by those who would treat, and speak of, women as lower in a chain-of-command too….who, also, speak against emergent [whilst misinterpreting it and those who find the conversation helpful].

The Trinity – women – the feminine and masculine as both being part of the Image of God in Humans..
This is an important theological point that needs to be looked at.
Kevin Giles has written a book that deals with this – I think it’s called ‘The Trinity and Subordination’

Having read about M.D.’s comments about women [including his own wife], I am beginning to see how some are forming anti-emerging camps. I am sad that the stream of churches I used to belong to [in the U.K.] are endorsing him, brother or not…
strangely they always used to fling the word ‘grace’ around a lot too….took us [me and my family] a while to find out that it was mainly used as a theological concept, rather than as power for living and communicating, and understanding those who were asking ”why,” [that is if they were not too intimidated to ask because of their chain of command concepts of ‘authority’].

Yes, I do think ‘heresy-hunters’ are a dangerous breed that distract from the real tasks…
but reformers always get flack [or are killed physically too] from those who feel they are more orthodox.

I was set not to like the book, The Shack but after reading it, I thought it was really good and thought provoking. All the time I read it, I kept thinking it needs a study to go along with it. I finally decided God was urging me to write a study which I did. If anyone would like it, email me at prayerdigm.bookstudy@yahoo.com. I would be glad to send you the study. You are welcome to use it and copy it for others.
Trish Pickard

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[…] God when He is trying to come in). This spirit of fear is the bread and butter of the heresy hunter pages. The greatest discernment you will ever have is to be able to recognize God, not the devil. […]

[…] original Ooze post. It also opened me up to a fair bit of heresy-hunting, which I’ve covered extensively. Carl has re-published a classic of his dealing with all of this material, titled Spirituality: A […]